WEDNESDAY, JULY 02, 2025
Israeli PM Netanyahu reaffirms to fully control Gaza; dismisses speculation of rift with Trump
Published on May 22, 2025
By IANS
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- JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reaffirmed his government's intention to fully reoccupy besieged Gaza, dismissed any agreement to end the war, and brushed aside any speculations of a rift with US President Donald Trump.
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- "There are certainly 20 hostages still alive in Gaza and up to 38 others believed to have been killed," he said on Wednesday during a press conference at his office in West Jerusalem.
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- The Palestinian group Hamas has repeatedly expressed its readiness to release Israeli captives in a single exchange in return for an end to the war, an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and the release of Palestinian prisoners.
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- Netanyahu has rejected those terms, instead demanding the disarmament of Palestinian resistance factions and insisting on the full reoccupation of Gaza.
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- He also laid out his conditions for ending the war: the return of all Israeli hostages, the removal of the Hamas leadership from Gaza, and the complete disarmament of the group.
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- Netanyahu claimed that once these goals are achieved, Israel would move to implement the so-called Trump Plan -- widely interpreted as a framework for the relocation of Palestinians from Gaza.
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- Netanyahu also dismissed speculation of a falling out with the US administration following a visit to the Gulf by Trump that left out Israel.
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- Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates hauled in a series of big-ticket business deals, but fuelled widespread media commentary pointing out that Israel, Washington's closest ally in the region, had not been included.
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- The visit followed Trump's decision to end a US bombing campaign against the Houthis in Yemen.
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- Netanyahu, who had previously made no public comment on the issue, told reporters at a news conference that he told him: "'Bibi, I want you to know, I have a complete commitment to you and I have a complete commitment to the state of Israel.'"
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- Amid growing international pressure on Israel, Trump has urged a quick end to the war in Gaza and spoken of the suffering of civilians in the besieged enclave, where an 11-week Israeli aid blockade has created a deep humanitarian crisis.
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- In a separate conversation a few days ago, Netanyahu said US Vice President J.D. Vance had told him: "'Don't pay attention to all these fake news stories about this rupture between us'".
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